Hydraulic disposal plant for pulverulent products



y 7, 1963 J. MASCARELLO ETAL 3,382,011

HYDRAULIC DISPOSAL PLANT FOR PULVERULENT PRODUCTS Filed Feb. 27, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 :0 n R M 5 m Yves Dun -15 Fm-wc/s Mmav Mxy 7, 1968 J- MASCARELLO ET AL 3,382,011

HYDRAULIC DISPOSAL PLANT FOR PULVERULENT PRODUCTS Filed Feb. 27, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 luvsn TOR-S:

JEAN Mnscnnsuo Yves Dumas Fmucas MARY United States Patent 6 4 Claims. (Cl. 302-14) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to an improved hydraulic disposal plant for products of very small grain size substantially insoluble in water.

According to the invention, disposal of the pulverulent products, suspended beforehand in water so that they can be transported or conveyed, is effected by means of a flexible hose supported by a swivelling-jib tower crane anchored at the centre of a disposal area, means being provided for imparting to the discharge end of the flexible hose a series of spirals staggered from the centre towards the periphery of the disposal area and vice-versa, which enables the puverulent products to be distributed over a limited area in a layer of considerable thickness in naturally compacted form and without any need for separate decantation apparatus, the water used for delivery or transport being eliminated by filtration.

The present invention relates generally to the disposal of pulverulent products handled hydraulically.

The invention is particularly but not exclusively concerned with the disposal of so-called flying ashes emanating from the removal of dust from Smoke given off by industrial furnaces, for example those used in electricity generating stations.

The invention can also be applied to the hydraulic handling of coal by carboduc or even to the disposal of certain contaminated waters, such as sewage, effluents in general, waters for industrial use, etc.

It is well known that the disposal of pulverulent products of very small particle size involves problems which are particularly diflicult to solve owing to the physical characteristics of the materials to be handled, their fine ness in particular.

The problems involved in handling products of this kind have been solved by mechanical (belt conveyors), pneumatic or hydraulic means.

As far as hydraulic handling is concerned, considerable difficulties are encountered in separating the soluble, pulverulent product from the water by which it is carried. This is because the product can only be handled in low concentrations, for example around 150 to 250 g. per litre. Accordingly, it is necessary to build decanters of large surface area which involves considerable expense, particularly if the disposal area is badly situated, in which case dykes have to be built or other earth-moving work undertaken. In addition, large quantities of water have to be removed or recycled after the product has been decanted.

The object of this invention is to obviate these disadvantages by means of an improved hydraulic disposal plant comprising simple, strongly built components. It is another object of the invention to provide a disposal plant enabling the hydraulically conveyed product to be decanted over a reduced area in a layer of considerable thickness, without any need for separate equipment to remove the waters.

3,382,011 Patented May 7, 1968 It is another object of the invention to provide a disposal plant controlled automatically to ensure that the product is distributed as uniformly as possible Over the disposal area.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a disposal plant in which a combined traveling and rotational movement is imparted to the means. for discharging the hydraulically conveyed, pulverulent product.

All these objects as well as the advantages and features of the invention will become more clearly apparent during the following description by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a general view of a hydraulic disposal plant according to the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is an axial section through a swivel joint allowing a fixed hydraulic carrier pipe to be connected to a flexible disposal hose.

FIGURE 3 is an axial section through a distributor cone arranged at the discharge end of the flexible disposal hose.

FIGURE 4 diagrammatically illustrates the means used to drive the end of the flexible disposal hose.

FIGURE 1 diagrammatically illustrates a complete plant for the hydraulic disposal of pulverulent products, for example flying ashes emanating from the removal of 'dust from the smoke given otf by the furnaces of electricity generating plants. It should of course be understood that the present invention is not limited to the disposal of products of this kind and that the plant described in the following only represents one particular embodiment of the invention.

The plant shown in FIGURE 1 comprises a vessel for storing flying cylinders diagrammatically illustrated in the form of a silo 1. An extractor 2 which may be of the rotary sieve type (perforated distributor) driven by a motor 3 and a combined variable-speed and reduction gear 4, delivers the ashes into a vertical cylindrical pipe 5 which, at its lower end, terminates in a flared, curved section 6, a so-called carps tail. This carps tail 6 opens into a sloping wetting or moistening chute 7 of square crosssection which, at its upper end, is supplied with water from a vessel 8 forming a ski-jump overflow 9.

The shoot 7 opens into the upper part of a mixing tank 10. At its lower end, this tank 10 comprises rinsing nozzles 11 and a means 12 injecting compressed air for agitation purposes. A level control comprising a float 13 and a combined signalling and remote control unit 14, acts on an electrovalve 15 controlling or part of a delivery pipe 16 for water under pressure, and on the motor 3 of the extractor 2.

A delivery pipe 17 advantageously made of cast iron or rolled steel and comprising pumping gear 18, leads off from the lower end of the mixing tank 10.

The pipe 17 climbs up a tower crane 19 anchored at the centre of a tipping or disposal area 26. This crane 19 comprises a swivelling jib 20 which is balanced by counterweights and along which travels a trolley 21. A flexible hose 22 is suspended from the jib 20 by mobile supports 27 and, at one end, is connected to the delivery pipe 17 by a swivel joint 23 and at the other end to a discharge unit 24 provided with a distributor cone 25 discharging the ashes on to the disposal area 26.

As can be seen in detail in FIGURE 2, the swivel joint 23 is connected to the delivery pipe 1.7 by a first union joint 28 and comprises a fixed steel tube 29 carried by a support 35) integral with a non-swivelling part of the crane 19. The mobile part of the swivel joint 23 comprises a pipe 31 fixed by a collar 32 to the swivelling part of the crane 19 applied against the tube 19 and its sup port by a mounting 33 supplied with. water under pressure by an adjoining pipe 34. The mounting 33 also comprises a packing box 35 and a pressurised greasing unit 36. At its upper end, the swivel pipe 31 is connected to a metal crown 38 by means of a second union joint 39. The flexible hose 22 is connected to this crown 38.

FIGURE 3 is a detailed view of the discharge unit 24 provided with its distributor cone 25. This discharge unit 24 comprises a metal crown 40 to which a coupling 41 is fixed. At its lower end, the metal crown comprises three supports 42 which enclose angles of 120 between them and to which the distributor cone 25 is fixed.

Regular discharge of the product over the disposal area 26 is obtained by combining the swivel-ling movements of the jib 20 and the travelling movement of the trolley 21 along the jib. The flexible hose 22 may with advantage be made of reinforced coiled rubber to prevent if from collapsing. This flexible hose 22 is fastened to the mobile supports 27 along the jib which are connected together by a driving cable (not shown), being provided with swivel pins so that they can rotate. The discharge unit 24 arranged at the discharge end of the hose 22 can be raised by means of a small winch (not shown) which is arranged on the moving trolley 21 and whose cable passes through the coupling 41. The trolley 21 comprises means for driving it along the jib 20. These means, shown diagrammatically in FIGURE 4, comprise a variable-speed gear 43 controlled by a motor 44 and a reduction gear 45. The variable-speed gear 43 drives a worm gear reducer 48 through pinions 46 and 47. Apulley 49 is fixed to the shaft of the worm gear reducer 48. A steel cable (not shown) travelling around the pulley 49 drives the trolley.

The movement of the trolley along the jib 20 is limited by two end-of-travel buffers (not shown) arranged at the two ends of the jib.

The electric control panel from which the movements of the trolley are controlled may be installed in the cabin of the crane. The wiring between this panel and the jib 20 of the crane is connected by a series of slide rings (not shown) allowing the jib to swivel.

The plant according to the invention operates as follows:

The pulverulent products which are stored in the silo 1 are removed by the extractor 2 and are deposited tangentially at 6 on to the film of water of constant thickness formed by the overflow 9 in the shoot 7. The flared, curved form or carps tail 6 of the lower end of the vertical pipe enables the pulverulent product to be uniformly wetted or moistened.

The concentration of product to be conveyed in the water by which it is carried can be adjusted firstly by regulating the quantity in which the product is extracted by means of the combined variable-speed and reduction gear 4 and secondly by regulating the rate of flow of the water over the ski-jump overflow.

The product thus moistened is delivered into the mixing tank 10 in which the desired final concentration can be reached and the product conditioned for correct, regular intake by the pump unit 18.

A combined signalling and remote control unit 14 closes the electrovalve 15 and stops the extraction motor 3 when the float 13 reaches the high level (HN), thus stopping the inflow of mix into the tank 10. However, when the float 13 reaches the low level (NB), the electrovalve is opened and the extraction motor 3 restarted.

A very high level (NTH) and a very low level (NTB) are also provided on the mixing tank 10 to control the alarm, signalling and automatic stoppage of the complete plant, if necessary.

At the outlet of the mixing tank 10, the mix is taken up by the pumping gear 18 comprising a water pump and delivered into the pipe 17 towards the disposal area.

As already mentioned, the fixed pipe 17 is connected to the flexible disposal hose at the disposal site by means of the swivel joint 23 provided on the column of the crane 19.

The flexible hose 22 is carried by the trolley 21 which is equipped with means for displacing it along the jib 20.

To ensure that the mixture of water and pulverulent products is distributed as uniformly as possible over the disposal area, the variable-speed gear 43 is controlled In such a way that the linear speed of travel of the trolley is inversely proportional to the radius of gyration of the trolley on the jib 20 of the crane 19.

This result is obtained by fixing the reduction ratio at the output end of the variable-speed gear 43 in such a way that the variable-speed gear is displaced by a distance corresponding to its total length of travel along the jib 20 in the time the variable speed gear takes to pass from its minimum to its maximum ratio. The speed at which the jib 20 of the crane 19 swivels or rotates is uniform and is governed solely by the reach or span of the crane, i.e. by the radius of the maximum turning circle used for the disposal of the pulverulent product. For example, this speed is equivalent to approximately 1 turn per minute for a reach of 25 metres.

It is apparent from the foregoing that the discharge unit 24 makes a series of spirals staggered from the centre to the periphery and vice versa above the disposal area 26.

As the layer of product distributed over the area 26 increases in thickness, the height of the discharge unit 24 and its distributor cone 25 can be regulated by means of the winch mounted on the trolley 21. In this way, the product can always be distributed in such a way as to obtain optimum dispersion of the mixture, irrespective of the layer thickness of the tip and the extent of the winds.

As has already been mentioned, the present invention is not limited to the disposal of flying ashes which has just been described, but may also be used for the hydraulic disposal of numerous other pulverulent product.

One particularly advantageous application of the present invention is in the hydraulic handling of coal, for example for feeding furnaces. The disposal process according to the invention enables pieces of coal being transported to be effectively decanted which greatly facilitates their subsequent combustion in the generators of power plants.

The rotary hydraulic disposal according to the present invention also provides a solution to the problem of decanting certain contaminated liquids whose filtration is usually very difficult, with the possibility of recycling these waters when their availability is limited.

What is claimed is:

1. In a hydraulic handling plant for pulverulent products substantially insoluble in water, comprising means for suspending the pulverulent product in water, a fixed delivery pipe and means for circulating said suspension in the fixed pipe,

a disposal system for pulverulent products suspended in water, arranged at the centre of a disposal area, comprising in combination (a) a tower crane having a fixed tower and a jib swivelling around this tower;

(b) a trolley displaceable along said jib;

(0) means for displacing said trolley along said (d) means for varying the speed of travel of said trolley;

(e) a flexible hose having a first end connected to said fixed delivery pipe and a second end for discharging said suspension, being supported and driven by said displaceable trolley;

the effect of which is to impart a spiral movement to said discharge end, the spirals being staggered from the centre towards the periphery of said disposal area and vice versa. Q

2. A disposal system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means for driving said trolley comprise a variablespeed gear controlled by a servomotor and a worm gear reducer to whose shaft there is fixed a pulley around which travels a cable.

5 6 3. A disposal system as claimed in claim 1, wherein References Cited said displaceable trolley also comprises a winch whose A N cable supports the discharge end of said flexible hose. UNITED STATES P TE TS 4. A disposal system as claimed in claim 1, wherein 2328;164 3/1958 Spence said first end of said flexible hose is joined to said fixed 5 3,145,855 3/1964 Plugge et 17 pipe by means of a swivel joint comprising a fixed part 3,298,749 1/1967 Croon et al. 302-56 integral with said tower of the crane and mountings supplied with water under pressure. ANDRES H. NIELSEN, Primary Examiner. 

